Manhattan

A New England mind-set has cast a long shadow on the history of Manhattan, Kansas. By 1855, social reformers flocked to build a community in a beautiful valley where the Kansas and Blue Rivers meet. They established a land grant university that eventually became Kansas State University, formed close ties to nearby Fort Riley, and learned to adjust their lives in alignment with the ecological forces of the Flint Hills. Today, as one of the most flourishing cities in Kansas and the nation, Manhattan retains its reformist outlook built upon the bedrock of the university and the fort.

James Sherow is a history professor at Kansas State University. For 20 years, he has taught the histories of Kansas, the American West, and North American Indians. He has published three books and scores of articles. For the past six years, he has served as a city commissioner, including a one-year stint as the mayor. He has selected photographs from the Riley County History Museum, Special Collections in Hale Library at Kansas State University, and the City of Manhattan archives. These photographs, gleaned from the thousands available, give a pictorial history of a unique and vibrant city nestled in the Flint Hills of Kansas.